Rachael Markham

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(UK) Are preferential creditors unsecured creditors?

It seems like s248 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (“Act”) is flavour of the month with the judiciary at the moment, with two recent cases analysing this in the context of administration extensions (read our previous blogs here and here ) and now a further decision considering this in the context of converting an administration … Continue Reading

Reflections on The UK Pensions Regulator’s (TPR) Powers that could see Insolvency Practitioners facing £1million fines

There is a tension between UK insolvency and pensions laws. Put simply, this is because insolvency laws look to protect all of the company’s creditors, but pension laws seek to protect the interests of the pension creditors alone. When new offences and criminal sanctions were introduced in 2021 enabling TPR to issue fines of up … Continue Reading

(UK) Should we all be a bit more relaxed about procedural hiccups in notices appointing administrators?

As practitioners we pour over notices of intention to appoint (NOIA) and notices of appointment of administrators (NOA) to make sure every detail is accurate.  Why? Because no one wants to risk an invalid appointment because there was a minor mistake or error that was overlooked.  Understandably errors occur, particularly when the appointment of administrators … Continue Reading

(UK) The Court Considers the Question of Whether Secured Creditor Consent is Required to an Administration Extension Again. “Too Good” to be True?

No, it isn’t.  We now have two cases where the Court has decided that the consent of paid secured creditors is not required when extending an administration under para. 78 of Schedule B1 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (the “Act”). In Boughey & Anor v Toogood International Transport and Agricultural Services Ltd [2024] EWHC 1425 … Continue Reading

(UK) What practical changes can IPs expect from the proposed amendments to FCA guidance?

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA has issued a consultation about proposed changes to its Guidance for Insolvency Practitioners.  The aim is to clarify existing guidance and provide more information to insolvency practitioners (IPs) on how to deal with regulated firms. The proposed amendments (shown as track changes in this document) intend to update the … Continue Reading

UK Litigation Funding post PACCAR – Tying up Loose Ends

Last year we discussed the impact of funding insolvency litigation following the Supreme Court decision in PACCAR where the court found that litigation funding agreements (LFAs) were damaged based agreements.  This meant that unless LFAs complied with the Damages Based Agreements Regulations 2013 (DBA Regulations), they were unenforceable.  Although concluding that the outcome of the … Continue Reading

Update for Insolvency Practitioners on UK Companies House Filings

Following our previous alert, in which we highlighted an issue with entries relating to registered security maintained at Companies House being incorrectly updated to indicate that they had in fact been discharged without the awareness of the relevant company or security holder, it appears that some (potentially all) unauthorised filings have been – or are in … Continue Reading

Quick Guide to Administration (UK)

For those unfamilar with the various insolvency processes it is not always easy to differentiate between them. In our latest insight we have produced a quick guide to administration that explains the procedure, benefits and effect of administration on third parties, including employees, suppliers and landlords. Our quick guide also explains the administrator’s role and … Continue Reading

Members Voluntary Liquidations (MVL) – Update

In recent months, there have been a few changes regarding MVLs which we have set out in this insight as a helpful reminder to practitioners.  Our insight considers the changes to filing statements of solvency, comments on the practice of remote swearing those statements and highlights the change in policy regarding clearance letters from HMRC.… Continue Reading

Additional Caution Required for Insolvency Practitioners Relying on Companies House Filings (UK)

Over the past week, reports have emerged about filings that have been made at Companies House marking a charge as satisfied, without the company’s or relevant lender’s knowledge. There were rumours last week, which were simply that, because Companies House had not publicly announced any issue, but, as we have seen over the weekend and … Continue Reading

(UK) Director Administration Appointments: Does the Company Really Need a Moratorium?

With increased public awareness that a notice of intention to appoint administrators (NOI) has been filed, we are finding that third parties – usually the company’s creditors, suppliers and employees – are disrupting the administration process in a way that can cause significant risks to a company’s ability to continue trading, the overall value of … Continue Reading

(UK) ‘Substitution First, Standing Later’ – The Risk of Supporting Creditors

The case of Liberty Commodities Ltd v Citibank NA London & Ors [2023] EWHC 2020 (Ch) provides a helpful reminder of the principles that the court will adopt when dealing with a winding up petition – particularly where there are supporting creditors. Even when the company and petitioning creditor have reached agreement in respect of the petition debt … Continue Reading

(UK) HMRC and Restructuring Plans: The Next Chapter

A thorny question facing a company when considering a Restructuring Plan is how to deal with HMRC particularly following HMRC’s opposition to recent plans. Creditors now have some assistance in these deliberations thanks to guidance published by HMRC setting out how they will approach discussions with companies considering a Restructuring Plan. The guidance reflects the … Continue Reading

(UK) Have You Got Consent? Dealing with Administration Extensions

Although an initial administration extension can be dealt with by consent, if that consent is not valid the extension will also be invalid.  This leaves administrators in a difficult position because they will not be in office unless the court remedies the position.  Obtaining consent might seem straightforward but obtaining the consent of secured creditors … Continue Reading

Are UK Restructuring Plans Still too Expensive?

As far as they go, restructuring plans have worked well since they were first introduced 3 years ago.  This is reflected in the most recent review of CIGA published by the Insolvency Service which reflects favourably on this new insolvency measure. However, there are still some barriers to its use. Not unsurprisingly costs are quoted … Continue Reading

Expected Changes to the UK Corporate Moratorium

The three year review of CIGA (the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act) published by the Insolvency Service suggests that we might see changes to the corporate moratorium process – will these address concerns about the process and encourage more insolvency practitioners to recommend its use? The moratorium aims to protect companies from enforcement action to … Continue Reading
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